Fathers of the Movement

More than ten years ago, Trayvon Martin, an unarmed Black teen, was fatally shot in a gated neighborhood in Florida while on his way back to their home from a local convenience store. Martin’s death — and his shooter’s acquittal — would go on to spark a new generation of protests and global attention on police and citizen violence against Black people. 

In the wake of this renewed energy around anti-Black racism, a coalition of racial justice organizations like The Black Lives Matter Network, Dream Defenders, and Black Youth Project sprouted all over the country, signaling a new era of Black organizing. These groups helped lay down the groundwork for the massive and enduring protests that erupted in Ferguson, Mo., in the days and months after Michael Brown Jr., an unarmed Black teenager, was killed by a white police officer on August 9, 2014. 

Within this larger movement for Black lives, the fathers of countless slain Black boys rose up to lead the cause. On this episode of Into America, host Trymaine Lee speaks with Tracy Martin, Trayvon Martin’s dad, along with Michael Brown Sr., and Jacob Blake Sr. about the weight of Black fatherhood amid a global fight for Black life.

For a transcript, please visit msnbc.com/intoamerica. 

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Further Listening: 

• Reconstructed: The Book of Trayvon
• After George Floyd
• Can You Hear Us Now: Juneteenth